Chitwood Lake & Hanson Lake Loop via Pilchuck River Trail

15.8 mi · ▲ 1,978 ft · 6 hr 15 min

Chitwood Lake & Hanson Lake Loop via Pilchuck River Trail is a 15.8-mile loop near Pilchuck, WA. The route passes Chitwood Lake and Hanson Lake. It climbs 1,978 ft, with sections as steep as 16% grade. It scores 89/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.

Elevation

0 mi509 – 1,663 ft · steepest grade: 16%16.0 mi

Getting there

Trailhead: Unnamed 48.02900, -121.91521
Nearest town Pilchuck, WA

Directions

AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com

Chitwood Lake & Hanson Lake Loop via Pilchuck River Trail

15.8 mi · ▲ 1,978 ft · 6 hr 15 min

Elevation 508–1,664 ft

Loop

Trailhead: 48.02900, -121.91521

Weather Sep 4: Light drizzle, high 69°F / low 52° · precip 28% · wind 3 mph · sunrise 6:31 AM · sunset 7:45 PM

Parking lot at the trailhead

  1. Start on Pilchuck River Trail, heading SE.
  2. 0.3 miTurn left, heading N.
  3. 2.7 miTurn left, heading NW.
  4. 1.1 miTurn left, heading W.
  5. 1 miSharp right, heading E.
  6. 0.1 miTurn left, heading E.
  7. 250 ftBear right, heading N.
  8. 1.5 miPass Chitwood Lake.
  9. 0.2 miTurn right, heading SE.
  10. 3.1 miPass Hanson Lake.
  11. 400 ftBear right, heading SE.
  12. 0.3 miBear left, heading SE.
  13. 0.6 miTurn right, heading SE.
  14. 350 ftTurn left, heading SW.
  15. 4.8 miThe loop closes back at the trailhead.

Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.

Trail surface

37% dirt9% gravel54% unspecified

Weather

Light drizzleTemperature 69°F52°
Precip28%Wind3 mphUV6Humidity78%
Rained 0.2″ 6 days ago
Hourly temperatureRain chance
70°50° 12 AM: 5% rain1 AM: 8% rain2 AM: 5% rain3 AM: 7% rain4 AM: 8% rain5 AM: 6% rain6 AM: 11% rain7 AM: 10% rain8 AM: 12% rain9 AM: 15% rain10 AM: 11% rain11 AM: 8% rain12 PM: 4% rain1 PM: 2% rain2 PM: 5% rain3 PM: 20% rain4 PM: 18% rain5 PM: 23% rain6 PM: 28% rain7 PM: 28% rain8 PM: 25% rain9 PM: 13% rain10 PM: 9% rain11 PM: 5% rain
Sunrise 6:31 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PMSunset 7:45 PM
Sat 70°52° 29%
Sun 73°49°
Mon 72°49°
Tue 74°51°
Wed 83°54°
Thu 74°56° 19%

Sunset

The best sunset spot on this hike is 0.5 mi in (~18 min). Leave by 7:07 PM for the 7:45 PM sunset. Back at your car by 8:11 PM — 5 min before dark.

More sunset hikes nearby

Good to know

  • Parking lot at the trailhead

Other ways to reach this destination

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